In a home kitchen, a microwave oven is one of the additional appliances that you can do without for a while. It is another thing when the microwave suddenly goes on strike at work, leaving the food cold. It’s especially annoying when the microwave doesn’t respond to button presses: the microwave seems to be in good working order, but it won’t turn on, or you can’t set the desired mode.
The microwave oven does not respond to the buttons: causes of malfunction
The button itself is nothing more than a trigger that starts a mechanism that closes a contact. If nothing happens when you press it, it means that the signal is stuck somewhere.
Also, in the design of microwave ovens, there are purely mechanical controls associated with opening/closing the door. The plastic hook can break, and then the door stops functioning properly. Let’s look at the differences between malfunctions of touch and mechanical controls. It is the design features that largely determine the algorithm of actions that are followed when the buttons on the microwave oven do not work or are glitchy.
Touch panel
Touch controls are not super reliable, and in the case of a microwave oven, they do not really touch controls at all. In fact, it is an electronic control realized with the help of membrane keyboard buttons.
The keyboard consists of two films with conductive tracks. Between them is a bonding mask with holes opposite the contact pads.
Possible malfunctions:
- After several years of operation, a situation may arise when the intermediate layer is pushed through. As a result, some of the touch buttons do not work, and/or the microwave randomly switches modes. Spontaneous activation happens with the most popular buttons. They are characterized by a short circuit.
- The second weak point is the cable that sends signals to the board. Conductive tracks oxidize over time and stop transmitting signals. As a result, all or some buttons do not respond to pressing.
- Defective tracks on the membrane.
- The controller on the control board is malfunctioning.
Normal buttons
Mechanics fail less often. If the microwave does not press a regular button, the problem may be related to various parts of the oven. If it doesn’t turn on, first make sure the power is on. Perhaps the power went out in the house, or something happened to the outlet. Then you need to check the fuse on the control unit and other components. Somewhere the signal is lost, and the magnetron does not start.
If the microwave oven does not want to respond to the door open button, you need to inspect the bracket with hooks, which is part of the opening structure. When the bracket is defective, the door stops responding to the magic button.
Touch buttons on the microwave oven do not work: how to fix it
The most common malfunction is that several tracks on the loop do not work. To fix the problem:
– Pull the plug out of the outlet.
– Remove the upper part of the microwave oven body. To do this, unscrew several bolts.
– Pull out the control unit with the touch panel attached to it. Before doing so, disconnect the wires. In order to connect them in the same order later, it makes sense for a layman to take a picture of the working position of the current conductors. The unit is held by 1-2 screws, and there are also additional fasteners in the form of latches.
– Remove the cable from the board, unscrew the screws, and disconnect it from the touch panel.
– Carefully inspect the visible part of the cable. If there are any suspicious areas, perform diagnostics with a multimeter. If the tracks on the visible part are not damaged, stick the keyboard from the base. Inspect the entire loop. Be careful not to damage the front part.
– Call the tracks as follows. Place one probe of the tester in the ringing mode in front of the alleged damage site, and the other after. If the multimeter does not beep, the track needs to be repaired.
– Clean the problem area, and degrease it.
– Restore the track with conductive varnish. It may be necessary to apply the conductor in several layers. To speed up drying, you can use a hair dryer.
– The penultimate step is to check the operation with a multimeter.
– We assemble the microwave.
After such a repair, the buttons on the microwave oven do not get stuck, everything is pressed on the first try. If you have diagnosed a faulty loop, but don’t want to bother with the tracks, you can buy a new touch panel.
Mechanical buttons on the microwave get stuck: what to do?
In terms of mechanics, self-repair is possible if it is a broken open button. You can replace the broken bracket with hooks with a new one. To do this, you will have to remove the inner door panel. It’s worse if the button responsible for starting the microwave oven doesn’t work. In this case, it can be difficult to find the damaged area. It may be worth contacting a service center.
Sometimes the Start button works, the microwave oven lights up, and the tray spins, but the food does not heat up. In this case:
A fuse, transformer, magnetron, capacitor, or diode is blown. Replace the defective part.
In an advanced model, the inverter is burned out. Replace the inverter.
Finally, a few words about the prevention of malfunctions related to buttons. You can lay straws at the stage of purchase. Touch models are the most vulnerable. They are more functional than mechanical ones, but if you are buying a microwave oven exclusively for heating, and do not use complex programs, it may make sense to give preference to equipment without a membrane keyboard. Such microwaves are cheaper and more reliable, and they are less sensitive to power surges.
We have appliance repair experts available today! Call a professional Poway Appliance Service Center technician by phone or book your service.
Our service center is open 24/7, so you can easily schedule a convenient repair time. The specialist will arrive at the agreed time, carry out a diagnosis, and, if necessary, offer repairs. If you are willing, your appliance will be repaired directly on-site within 1-2 hours. We provide top-notch service at an affordable price!
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